Bolvar Fordragon

Highlord Bolvar Fordragon is the paladin who governs Stormwind as regent in Classic, ruling for the boy king Anduin Wrynn while King Varian Wrynn is missing. He is the Alliance's main quest-giver for its biggest end-game stories: the Onyxia attunement, the Nathanos Blightcaller hunt, and the trophy heads of Onyxia and Nefarian. Years later he becomes the second Lich King.

Biography

Bolvar is a veteran of the Second War and a paladin of the Silver Hand, and a close friend of Varian Wrynn. When Varian vanished on his way to a summit with Jaina Proudmoore in Theramore, Bolvar became regent and Anduin was crowned in his father's place.

Bolvar is honest and devoted, but he is not suspicious enough. The noblewoman at his side in the throne room, Lady Katrana Prestor, is really Onyxia, daughter of Deathwing, and she has used magic to cloud his judgment. Through her, the Blackrock orcs and black dragonflight are left free to threaten the Redridge Mountains and Burning Steppes while Stormwind does nothing.

In World of Warcraft

Highlord Bolvar Fordragon stands in the throne room of Stormwind Keep beside the young king Anduin Wrynn and Lady Prestor. He is a level 63 boss with 799,500 health.

The Onyxia attunement

Bolvar is at the center of the long Alliance chain that leads to Onyxia's Lair:

1. In the Burning Steppes, Helendis Riverhorn sends players with The True Masters to Lakeshire, where Magistrate Solomon asks Stormwind for help against the black dragons.
2. In The True Masters Bolvar says he needs proof before he can send troops. He tells players to ask Lady Prestor, who of course reports that there is nothing to worry about.
3. Bolvar makes the player a deputy of Stormwind with The True Masters, and the trail leads to Marshal Maxwell, the missing Marshal Windsor, and Blackrock Depths, where players break Windsor out of prison in Jail Break!.
4. In Stormwind Rendezvous and The Great Masquerade, Windsor walks through Stormwind with a crowd of players behind him. When he reaches the throne room he unmasks Lady Prestor, who kills him and flees. Bolvar, freed from her spell, hands players a piece of the shattered medallion that held his mind.
5. Bolvar then starts The Dragon's Eye, which leads to Drakefire Amulet and the [Drakefire Amulet], the key to Onyxia's Lair.

Other quests

• Nathanos Blightcaller. Bolvar sends players to Master Mathias Shaw of SI:7 in The First and the Last. They learn that the ranger lord Nathanos Marris, thought dead, now serves the Forsaken. In Order Must Be Restored Bolvar orders an assault on Nathanos Blightcaller in the Eastern Plaguelands, a fight that usually draws a Horde defense.
• Head of Onyxia. Whoever loots the Alliance [Head of Onyxia] brings it to Bolvar in Victory for the Alliance. The head is hung over the gates of Stormwind and every Alliance player nearby receives Rallying Cry of the Dragonslayer, a two-hour buff to attack power and critical strike chance. Bolvar then sends the player to Major Mattingly for a reward such as [Onyxia Blood Talisman] or [Onyxia Tooth Pendant].
• Head of Nefarian. The [Head of Nefarian] goes to Bolvar in The Lord of Blackrock, which leads to Field Marshal Afrasiabi and a choice of [Master Dragonslayer's Medallion], [Master Dragonslayer's Orb] or [Master Dragonslayer's Ring].
• The True Masters. Bolvar is also the point where the Burning Steppes quest line The True Masters reaches Stormwind.

Later history

• Wrath of the Lich King (2008). Bolvar leads the Alliance's Valiance Expedition to Northrend. At the Battle of the Wrath Gate, the Forsaken under Grand Apothecary Putress release a new plague that kills both the Scourge and the living, and Bolvar seems to die. In fact the Lich King takes his burned body to Icecrown and tortures him. After Arthas falls in patch 3.3, someone has to wear the Helm of Domination to keep the Scourge under control. Bolvar takes the crown from Tirion Fordring and becomes the new Lich King, encased in ice on the Frozen Throne.
• Legion (2016). Bolvar raises death knights for the Ebon Blade's war against the Burning Legion.
• Shadowlands (2020). After Sylvanas breaks the helm, Bolvar joins the fight against the Jailer.

Trivia

• Turning in either dragon's head also puts the head on display in Stormwind for a time, a visible sign to everyone on the server that the raid was beaten.
• [Prestor's Talisman of Connivery], a trinket that drops from Nefarian in Blackwing Lair, is named after Onyxia's human disguise.

Sources

• Bolvar Fordragon - Warcraft Wiki
• The Great Masquerade - Warcraft Wiki
• Victory for the Alliance - Warcraft Wiki